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INNOVATIVE ENERGY CONVERSION
FROM BIOMASS WASTE
This page intentionally left blank
INNOVATIVE ENERGY CONVERSION
FROM BIOMASS WASTE

Arif Darmawan
Agency for the Assessment and Application of
Technology (BPPT), Puspiptek Serpong,
Tangerang Selatan, Indonesia

Muhammad Aziz
Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo,
Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Elsevier
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Contents

Contributors ix

1. An overview of biomass waste utilization 1

Arif Darmawan and Muhammad Aziz
1.1 Introduction: energy, sustainability, and efficiency 1
1.2 Global energy situation 4
1.3 Biomass waste as renewable energy 9
1.4 Biomass waste properties 14
1.5 Biomass waste potential 16
References 20

2. Process and products of biomass conversion technology 25

Arif Darmawan and Muhammad Aziz
2.1 Biomass upgrading 25
2.2 Thermochemical conversion 28
2.3 Biochemical conversion 43
2.4 Correlated technologies 49
References 54

3. Application of exergy analysis and enhanced process

integration 61
Arif Darmawan and Muhammad Aziz
3.1 The first law of thermodynamics mass and energy rate balances for a
steady flow process 62
3.2 The second law of thermodynamics and entropy 65
3.3 Exergy concept 69
3.4 Exergy analysis of biomass conversion process 80
3.5 Process modeling and exergy efficiency improvement 83
3.6 Enhanced process integration: new approach 95
3.7 Integrated cogeneration system from biomass adopting enhanced
process integration: an example 101
References 103

v
vi Contents

4. Proposed integrated system from black liquor 107

Arif Darmawan, Muhammad Aziz and Koji Tokimatsu
4.1 Conventional energy recovery from black liquor 108
4.2 Bio-based proposed system employing evaporation, gasification, and
combined cycle 113
4.3 Black liquorebased hydrogen and power coproduction combining
supercritical water gasification (SCWG) and chemical looping 122
4.4 Efficient black liquorcogeneration of hydrogen and electricity via
gasification and syngas chemical looping 129
4.5 Coproduction of power and ammonia from black liquor 138
References 146

5. Integrated ammonia production from the empty fruit

bunch 149
Arif Darmawan, Muhammad Aziz, Muhammad W. Ajiwibowo,
Muhammad Kunta Biddinika, Koji Tokimatsu and Baskoro Lokahita

5.1 Ammonia for hydrogen storage 152

5.2 Studies on ammonia production 156
5.3 Efficient ammonia production from empty fruit bunch via
hydrothermal gasification, syngas chemical looping, and
NH3 synthesis 158
5.4 Direct ammonia production via a combination of carbonization and
thermochemical cycle from the empty fruit bunch 169
References 183

6. Integrated systems from agricultural waste for power

generation 187
Arif Darmawan, Muhammad Aziz, Muhammad Kunta Biddinika and
Koji Tokimatsu
6.1 Integrated system of rice production and electricity
generation 188
6.2 Coal cofiring of hydrothermal-treated empty fruit bunch 203
6.3 Conclusion 210
References 210
 Contents vii

7. Exergoeconomic, exergoenvironmental, and conclusion 213

Arif Darmawan and Muhammad Aziz
7.1 Exergoeconomic and exergoenvironmental analysis 213
7.2 Summary of the book, limitations, and the main conclusion 216
7.3 Main conclusion 219
References 219

Index 221
This page intentionally left blank
Contributors

Muhammad W. Ajiwibowo
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia
Muhammad Aziz
Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Muhammad Kunta Biddinika
Faculty of Industrial Technology, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan, Indonesia
Arif Darmawan
Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), Puspiptek Serpong,
Tangerang Selatan, Indonesia
Baskoro Lokahita
Department of Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institute of
Technology, Midori-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Koji Tokimatsu
Department of Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institute of
Technology, Midori-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

ix
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CHAPTER 1

An overview of biomass waste

utilization
Arif
1
Darmawan1 and Muhammad Aziz2
Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), Puspiptek Serpong, Tangerang
Selatan, Indonesia; 2Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan

1.1 Introduction: energy, sustainability, and

efficiency
Fossil fuels largely dominate today’s global energy supply. Fossil fuel is
combustible deposits, including coal, natural gas, crude oil, and heavy oils,
are made from decomposition of animals and plants and buried over
hundreds of millions of years. The massive use of fossil fuels, especially by
direct combustion, has caused environmental problems, such as air pollu-
tion and global temperature increase. When fossil fuels are burned, they
release greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide) to the envi-
ronment. The rise in greenhouse gas concentration can amplify the
greenhouse effect by trapping extra heat in the atmosphere, causing the
Earth’s temperature to rise. Other pollutants are also released (sulfur dioxide
and nitrogen oxides) during combustion, contributing to acid rain and
various health problems primarily related to human respiratory function.
Another side effect of fossil fuel use is water pollution due to contamination
in energy recovery sites and raw fossil fuel extraction and processing. This
contamination can have devastating impacts on human life. However, it
seems a gradual transition is the best possible way to leave fossil fuels in the
ground. Reducing fossil fuels also requires alternative energy sources that
offer a sustainable supply with lower environmental impacts.
Ideally, sustainable energy development consists of three main condi-
tions: promoting renewable energy, low environmental impact, and
achieving high process efficiency. Renewable energy refers to the energy
produced from sources that naturally can be replenished. The major types
of renewable energy sources are hydropower, geothermal, wind power,
biomass, and solar. The interest in renewable energy as an alternative source
is increasing. Many countries have also been promoting new policies and
considerable investments to increase renewable energy share in the national

Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

ISBN 978-0-323-85477-1 © 2022 Elsevier Inc.
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-85477-1.00007-5 All rights reserved. 1
2 Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

Fossil fuels Combustion Fuels Power grids Residential

Distribution, storage
Energy conversion
• Coal
Power plant Electricity Pipelines Industry

Secondary form
Primary energy

• Natural gas

End use
• Crude oil Biorefineries Heat Transportation Transportation
Chemical plants Fuels Commercial
Renewables
• Biomass Photovoltaics Battrery
• Solar, wind
Mechanical
• Hydro
• Geothermal
storage

Figure 1.1 Schematic of energy flows from primary energy supply to final energy use.

energy mix. Both renewables and fossil fuels as primary energy sources are
usually not suitable for direct use by end users. These primary sources must
be converted into common secondary energy forms like electricity, heat, or
fuels (diesel, gasoline, hydrogen, etc.) before being either stored or
distributed to end users (see Fig. 1.1). The primary to secondary energy
form’s conversion process takes place in various plants such as fossil fuel and
renewables power plants, biorefineries, chemical processing plants, or heat
recovery by direct combustion. In the last step, the secondary energy form
is distributed to provide energy services in residential, industry, trans-
portation, and commercial sectors.
Among the available types of renewable sources, biomass is a sustainable
alternative to replace fossil fuels. Unlike other primary sources, biomass is
more evenly distributed throughout the world. Biomass is considered CO2
neutral if it can be managed sustainably; therefore, it is crucial to improve
the current bioenergy systems. Biomass resources can be classified into three
types: natural growth, energy crops, and biomass waste. The utilization of
energy crops and biomass waste can avoid potential conflict with food
production or prevent a potential shortage of biomass-based commodities.
As discussed earlier, biomass feedstock as primary energy is not suitable for
direct use by final consumers. They should be utilized to produce secondary
energy forms or energy carriers such as biofuels, heat, or power through
various conversion technologies. Biofuel products can further be classified
according to states of matter as solid (densified biocoal), liquid (such as
ethanol, methanol, biodiesel, dimethyl ether), and gaseous (such as
hydrogen, biomethane).
Innovative integrated systems to efficiently generate electricity or pro-
duce biofuels are required, considering biomass waste’s high potential as an
energy source. Process efficiency simply means the ratio between the useful
output and the input into a process. In the past, efficiency is usually
 An overview of biomass waste utilization 3

evaluated using mass and energy balance. However, this approach has the
main disadvantage since the quality of materials and energy flows is not
involved, and no environmental reference is used. Eventually, the concept
of exergy was born based on first (energy) and second (entropy) thermo-
dynamics law [1]. Exergy, a measure of energy quality, is the maximum
amount of work obtainable when a material or process flow is brought to
equilibrium with its environment. Thermodynamic indicators based on
exergy are commonly accepted as the most natural way to measure the
performance of different energy technology processes, chemical engineer-
ing, transportation, agriculture, and so on.
Efficiency improvement of biomass conversion can be performed in a
design strategy using the pinch technology approach. The pinch technol-
ogy’s basic idea is to correctly perform process integration by considering all
the heat transfers occurring in a system to reduce energy consumption. The
method has been adopted in several studies employing biomass feedstocks
for ethylene and ethanol production [2,3], hydrogen production [4], bio-
diesel production [5] including power generation [6]. However, these
studies mostly focused on heat exchanger networks instead of manipulating
the system to make it more efficient; in other words, it is only considering
temperature as a quality parameter.
The book’s main task is to propose and discuss a suitable method of
efficiency improvement by adopting exergy recovery and process integra-
tion technologies. The basic idea of the approach is performing exergy
elevation in a single process before being integrated with other processes via
a heat exchanger network. This idea is substantially different from that of
the pinch technology. An onion diagram can be drawn to show the overall
process design steps (Fig. 1.2). A design process is performed from the inside
to the outside of the “onion.” The core of the whole process is the reaction
layer. Since we focus on an integrated energy system for biomass utilization,
the reactions involved are mainly conversion processes such as drying
(pretreatment), combustion, gasification, steam cycle, combined cycle, and
chemical looping. After a process development, such as physical separation
and reactor design, we can determine the possibility of performing exergy
recovery in each process, including developing the heat exchanger network
(for process integration) and the requirements for heating and cooling.
4 Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

Figure 1.2 An onion diagram of design strategy adopting exergy recovery and pro-
cess integration.

1.2 Global energy situation

Due to population and global economic growth, energy consumption is
increasing rapidly. The world’s population is expected to grow from 7.8
billion in 2020 to more than 9.5 billion in 2050 according to the UN
scenario [7,8]. Humans consume energy for transportation, heating/cool-
ing, or electricity in their daily activities. However, the rise of energy
consumption is not uniform among countries because of several factors such
as the economy and geographical situation, energy policy, emission goal,
available energy supply, etc. Currently, the world’s energy supply is mainly
dependent on fossil fuels. In 2017, over 70% of global energy demand
growth was met by fossil fuel resources. In 2018, oil contributed the highest
share of about 34% or 4662 Mtoe of global energy supply, followed by coal
(27%) and natural gas (24%) as shown in Fig. 1.3 [9]. In developing
countries, fossil fuels are still subsidized, resulting in a heavy dependence on
it and inefficient usage.
The United States is the top oil producer with an average of 17.87
million b/d, accounting for 18% of the world’s oil production in 2018.
Saudi Arabia is the second-largest producer with 12.42 million b/d (12%),
followed by Russia with an average of 11.4 million b/d (11%), Canada with
an average of 5.27 million b/d in 2018 (5%), and China with an average
4.82 million b/d (5%) [10]. China and the United States were also the
highest net oil importer, as reported in 2019, with 22.6% and 12.5% of
overall imported crude oil, respectively, followed by India (9.7%), Japan
(6.9%), Korea (6.6%), and other countries. China, the top coal-producing
country since 1985, reporting 3550 Mt of coal production in 2018 [11].
 An overview of biomass waste utilization 5

Figure 1.3 Fuel shares in total primary energy supply (TPES), 2018.

Although among the highest coal producers, China and India were listed as
the top five coal importers together with Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.
Other top fossil fuel-producing countries are shown in Table 1.1 [12,13].
Fig. 1.4 shows the world’s total final energy consumption by fuel
2001e17. In the last 20 years, the final energy consumption was steadily
rising except in 2009 (fell by 1.1%) due to the global economic recession. It
was recorded as the first decline since 1982. According to the IEA, the total
world final energy consumption was 9717 Mtoe, with the share of fossil
fuels being over 80% in 2017 [14]. With 37 member countries, the OECD
consumes a relatively large proportion of about 38.19% of the total final
energy consumption [14]. In 2018, two-third of the overall increase in the
world’s energy demand was dominated by China, the United States, and
India combined. Those three countries were also top energy consumers,
followed by Russia, Japan, South Korea, Germany, Canada, and Brazil.

Table 1.1 The World’s top fossil fuel producers in 2018.

Million Million Natural Billion cubic
No Oil barrel/day Coal tonnes gas meters
1 United 17.87 China 3550 United 864
States States
2 Saudi 12.42 India 764 Russia 741
Arabia
3 Russia 11.4 United 684 Iran 232
States
4 Canada 5.27 Australia 502 Canada 188
5 China 4.82 Indonesia 474 Qatar 168
6 Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

Figure 1.4 World total final energy consumption by fuel 2001e17.

Furthermore, about 18% of the total energy consumption was from

renewable sources, including traditional biomass. The traditional biomass
used for heating and cooking in developing countries accounted for 7.5% of
the total energy consumed. The most significant portion of the renewable
share (nontraditional biomass) was renewable thermal energy including
biomass, solar, and geothermal heat (4.2%), followed by hydropower
(3.6%), other renewable power sources including wind power and solar PV
(2%), and transport biofuels (1%) [15]. As a result of a large portion of fossil
fuels, energy-related CO2 emission increased by 1.7% to 33.1 Gt in 2018,
the fastest growth of carbon emissions in seven consecutive years. The
power and heat generation sector accounted for over 40% of the total
emitted CO2, followed by transportation, industry, and others. Coal use in
power alone contributed about 10 Gt CO2 (30% of total emitted CO2),
mostly in Asia. Another issue is high inequality within and among coun-
tries; 13% of the world population or 940 million people still live without
electricity in 2016 [10].
As of 2017, energy consumed for heating and cooling has the highest
portion, followed by transportation and power with 51%, 32%, and 17%,
respectively (see Fig. 1.5). Heating and cooling use thermal energy for some
activities such as water heating, space heating/cooling, residential cooling/
heating, refrigeration, and industrial processing like drying and cooking. It
includes any energy other than electricity used for motive power in any
applications [15]. It was estimated that the share of total renewable energy
(excluding traditional biomass use) in the heating and cooling was about
 An overview of biomass waste utilization 7

Figure 1.5 Renewable energy in total final energy consumption by sector, 2016.

9.8%. Although the use of fossil fuel (mostly oil) accounts for the biggest
portion of energy consumption in the transportation sector, the share of
biofuels (mainly ethanol and biodiesel) increased by about 18% between
2013 and 2017.
Many countries such as New Zealand, Germany, Costa Rica, Fiji,
France, Spain, and United Kingdom have national targets to increase
renewable energy use and become carbon-neutral by 2050. Sweden’s
parliament also voted to cut all greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 [16,17].
To achieve those commitments, they must find ways to satisfy national
energy demands by gradually replacing fossil fuels. The European Union
(EU) members set their target to reach 20% total share of renewables in the
power sector by 2020 and at least 32% by 2030 [18]. Among the 28 EU
members, 12 countries have already reached their target to increase re-
newables share, including Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Greece,
Croatia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Cyprus, Finland, and Sweden. The highest
share of renewables in 2018 was recorded by Sweden with more than half
(54.6%), followed by Finland (41.2%), Latvia (40.3%), Denmark (36.1%),
and Austria (33.4%).
The world electricity generation is predicted to be 24,112 TWh and still
dominated by fossil fuel of about 66.12% or 16,000 TWh in 2022 [19]. As
seen in Fig. 1.6A, fossil fuels’ use increases steadily, with coal being the
largest electricity generation source. Renewable electricity generation is
expected to contribute over 8000 TWh (about 34%) in 2022, equal to
China, India, and Germany’s total power consumption. Hydropower will
remain the largest source of renewable electricity generation in the forecast,
8 Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

Figure 1.6 (A) Total electricity generation by fuel, 2010e22 and (B) electricity
generation mix of selected countries in 2019.

followed by wind, solar PV, and bioenergy. The share of renewables in

power generation has been increasing due to strong government policies in
several countries to give attention to clean energy. The highest additional
capacity (181 GW) of new renewable power plants was recorded in 2018
and now it accounts for around one-third of total installed power gener-
ation capacity worldwide. The fourth consecutive year of renewable power
installations above 50% was recorded, including 64% in 2018. Fig. 1.6B
shows the electricity generation mix of selected countries including Asia
(China, Japan, India), Europe (Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy,
Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom), and America (United States,
Canada, Chile) [20,21].
 An overview of biomass waste utilization 9

In 2020, the global health crisis due to the coronavirus COVID-19

pandemic also affected energy consumption, oil demand, and emissions
level. It has slowed transportation, trade, and economic activities because of
global lockdown measures. In the first quarter of 2020, global coal demand
fell by almost 8% compared to the first quarter of 2019. Road transport and
aviation activities have dropped to 50% and 60% of 2019, respectively,
causing a complete halt in daily routines. This situation could also pose a
significant threat to the timely deployment of renewables. The renewables
momentum can also be disrupted without accurate responses. However,
this uncertain situation is expected to be unsustainable in the long term and
will not drastically change the global energy situation. Based on current
policy scenarios, renewables’ growth will continue, although not fast
enough to offset the increase of energy demand due to population and
economic growth. A supportive government is strongly required to pro-
mote an energy transition and determining the pace of deployment of
renewables in the future.

1.3 Biomass waste as renewable energy

As one renewable energy source, biomass is considered a promising alter-
native fuel in the future. Biomass contains stored energy from the sun via
the photosynthesis process. It is basically carbon neutral and evenly
distributed widely across the globe. Biomass is categorized as a material with
very complex components. This composition is a crucial parameter in
determining the suitable conversion technology for each biomass.
Although, in general, biomass mainly consists of cellulose, hemicellulose,
and lignin, several extractives and minerals are also included, affecting
material decomposition and its yields. Their conversion involves compli-
cated reactions; therefore, it is complicated to clarify the mechanism and
reactions during the conversion.
Although biomass can be classified in many ways, it can be divided into
three main categories: natural crops (aquatic and terrestrial plantation),
energy crops, and biomass waste. The latter is a by-product of biomass
processing resulted from agricultural and industrial activities due to the high
demand for food and other human needs. The massive increase in these
industrial activities has led to a significant amount of biomass waste. Biomass
waste utilization for energy purposes has some advantages: no conflict with
other basic human needs for food or materials and environmental impacts
reduction. The biomass waste is economically cheap; therefore, its effective
10 Innovative Energy Conversion from Biomass Waste

utilization as an energy source is believed able to meet the financial

requirement. It is also incoherent with the demand for industrial waste
treatment to mitigate any further environmental impacts. The biomass
waste itself can further be classified into human-made and natural biomass
waste. The utilization of biomass waste can reduce the environmental
problems caused by inappropriate treatment such as open burning or toxic
waste disposal. The overview of biomass classification can be seen in
Fig. 1.7.
Since animals eat plants or other animals, the stored chemical energy in
animal waste can be classified as biomass. Animal waste generally contains
organic matters, odors, bacteria, including nitrates. The chemical compo-
sitions vary depending on many factors such as feeding management, type
of species, nutrient intake, etc. Traditionally, animal waste is utilized as
organic manure to improve the soil nutrients for the plants. Currently,
standard management is required to handle animal waste for promoting
sustainability appropriately. Inappropriate treatment of animal waste can
have environmental impacts such as water contamination or harming
aquatic life. Via anaerobic digestion, animal waste can also be converted
into biogas for energy purposes. The decomposition process is carried out
by a group of bacteria to produce combustible methane and CO2. Biogas
projects are believed to generate a lot of interest in developing countries,
especially in rural development. In terms of water content, animal waste can
be classified into three types, solid, slurry, and wastewater. Different
treatments are required depending on the purpose of animal waste utili-
zation. Solid waste can directly be composted to produce fertilizer or dried
up before being combusted to obtain heat energy. The slurry waste with

Aquatic biomass
Natural growth
Terrestrial
Animal waste
plantations
Energy crops
Biomass Agriculture
Natural waste
waste

Forest residue
Biomass waste

Industrial waste
Man-made waste
Municipal waste

Figure 1.7 Biomass classification.

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 ¹⁴And Jehoiada the priest brought out the
captains of hundreds that were set over the
host, and said unto them, Have her forth
between the ranks; and whoso followeth her,
let him be slain with the sword: for the priest
said, Slay her not in the house of the Lord.
14. brought out] Read (as 2 Kings) commanded.

between the ranks] i.e. she was to be taken out between two
lines of guards.

¹⁵So they made way for her; and she went to

the entry of the horse gate to the king’s house:
and they slew her there.
15. the horse gate] Compare the note on the “gate of the
foundation” (verse 5).

16‒21 (= 2 Kings xi. 17‒20).

The Secret of the Fall of Athaliah.

¹⁶And Jehoiada made a covenant between

himself, and all the people, and the king, that
they should be the Lord’s people.
16. between himself, and all the people, and the king] Jehoiada
puts himself first as regent. In 2 Kings “between the Lord and the
king and the people.”

that they should be the Lord’s people] Compare xxix. 10, xxxiv.
31; Exodus xxiv. 1‒11; Deuteronomy xxvi. 17, 18; Nehemiah ix. 36‒
38.
 ¹⁷And all the people went to the house of Baal,
and brake it down, and brake his altars and
his images in pieces, and slew Mattan the
priest of Baal before the altars.
17. the house of Baal] When this was erected is not known,
perhaps under Jehoram (xxi. 6) or Ahaziah (xxii. 3), but it was
doubtless intended for the worship of the Tyrian Baal, for Athaliah
was probably grand-daughter of a Tyrian king (compare 2 Kings viii.
18 with 1 Kings xvi. 31). It is interesting to see that the revolt against
Athaliah in Jerusalem, like the revolution led by Jehu against her
parents, Ahab and Jezebel, in the Northern Kingdom, was fostered,
if not indeed caused, by religious antipathy. At least these passages
are of high value in showing the hold which the worship of Jehovah
had already obtained upon the loyalty of Israel. Court influences,
always powerful in such small states, when cast against the worship
of Jehovah, were unable for long to maintain the struggle against the
national “jealousy” for Him.

¹⁸And Jehoiada appointed the offices of the

house of the Lord under the hand of the
priests the Levites, whom David had
distributed in the house of the Lord, to offer
the burnt offerings of the Lord, as it is written
in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with
singing, according to the order of David ¹.
¹ Hebrew by the hands of David.

18. And Jehoiada appointed, etc.] This whole verse is

represented in Kings simply by the words, “And the priest appointed
officers (‘offices,’ margin) over the house of the Lord” (i.e. officers
for the care of the Temple, e.g. to see to cleaning and repairing it).
 the priests the Levites] Read probably the priests and the
Levites, and see the note on the same phrase in xxx. 27.

according to the order of David] Note that the Chronicler ascribes

all sacrificial arrangements to the law of Moses, but all musical
arrangements to David, compare 1 Chronicles xxv.

¹⁹And he set the porters at the gates of the

house of the Lord, that none which was
unclean in any thing should enter in.
19. he set the porters] Compare 1 Chronicles xxvi. 1 ff., 13 ff.
Jehoiada is regarded as re-establishing a Davidic arrangement
which had fallen into disuse.

²⁰And he took the captains of hundreds, and

the nobles, and the governors of the people,
and all the people of the land, and brought
down the king from the house of the Lord:
and they came through the upper gate unto
the king’s house, and set the king upon the
throne of the kingdom. ²¹So all the people of
the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet: and
they slew Athaliah with the sword.
20. the nobles] Hebrew addīrīm; compare Nehemiah iii. 5 (with
Ryle’s note). In 2 Kings, “the Carites”; compare verse 1 (note).

the upper gate] compare xxvii. 3, “the upper gate of the house of
the Lord.” In 2 Kings, “by the way of the gate of the guard”
(doubtless one of the gates of the palace). The Chronicler, writing at
a time when the palace had ceased to exist, naturally fixes localities
by reference to the Temple. The gate in question was probably one
in the north wall of the Temple court, referred to in Jeremiah xx. 2 as
“the upper gate of Benjamin.”

Chapter XXIV.
1‒3 (compare 2 Kings xi. 21‒xii. 3).
Joash begins to Reign.

¹Joash was seven years old when he began

to reign; and he reigned forty years in
Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Zibiah
of Beer-sheba. ²And Joash did that which was
right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of
Jehoiada the priest.
2. After this verse Kings adds “Howbeit the high places were not
taken away: the people sacrificed and burnt incense in the high
places.” This the Chronicler omits, for it was quite irreconcilable with
his notion of the religious reformation which marks the opening years
of the reign of Joash.

³And Jehoiada took for him two wives; and he

begat sons and daughters.
3. And Jehoiada, etc.] This verse is not in Kings. It was the duty
of a Jewish father to provide his son with a wife; Jehoiada standing
in loco parentis does this for Joash.

4‒14 (= 2 Kings xii. 4‒16).

The Restoration of the Temple.
 ⁴And it came to pass after this, that Joash was
minded to restore the house of the Lord. ⁵And
he gathered together the priests and the
Levites, and said to them, Go out unto the
cities of Judah, and gather of all Israel money
to repair the house of your God from year to
year, and see that ye hasten the matter.
Howbeit the Levites hastened it not.
5. and the Levites] Not in Kings; compare xxiii. 2 (note).

Go out unto the cities of Judah] According to Kings, the

restoration fund was to consist of a poll-tax (paid at the Temple at the
Great Feasts, Exodus xxiii. 14‒17) and of free-will offerings paid in
money, and nothing is said there about collecting money outside
Jerusalem.

hastened it not] In Kings, “in the three and twentieth year of king
Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house.”
Such protracted neglect of the repairs of the Temple appears the
more reprehensible (in Kings) since the money was paid at the
Temple, and therefore was actually in the hands of the priests. At the
same time, to the Chronicler, the royal command to use money from
the poll-tax and free-will offerings for the purpose of repairs was an
infringement of the priests’ prerogatives. He therefore relieves the
situation, partly by representing that the money was to be obtained
by a special collection throughout the land, and also by softening the
twenty-three years of inaction into “hastened it not.”

⁶And the king called for Jehoiada the chief,

and said unto him, Why hast thou not required
of the Levites to bring in out of Judah and out
of Jerusalem the tax of Moses the servant of
 the Lord, and of the congregation of ¹ Israel,
for the tent of the testimony?
¹ Or, for Israel.

6. of the Levites] See note on verse 5.

the tax of Moses] i.e. the half-shekel due from each male for
support of the sanctuary, according to Exodus xxx. 14‒16, xxxviii.
25, 26.

the tent of the testimony] “The testimony” refers to the Ten

Commandments, which contained the substance of God’s testimony
(protestation) to Israel. To illustrate the use of the phrase, note that
the two tables of stone were called “tables of the testimony” (Exodus
xxxi. 18, Revised Version); the ark which contained them was called
the “ark of the testimony” (Exodus xxv. 22); the veil which hung
before the ark was the “veil of the testimony” (Leviticus xxiv. 3); the
tent which contained the ark was either the “tabernacle (Hebrew
mishkān) of the testimony” (Exodus xxxviii. 21, Revised Version) or
the “tent (Hebrew ōhel) of the testimony” (Numbers ix. 15). The
tabernacle, with all its contents, was to be a standing protest to Israel
that Jehovah was with His people according to covenant, and that
every breach of the covenant would call forth punishment. Compare
Deuteronomy iv. 25, 26, viii. 19, etc.

⁷For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman,

had broken up the house of God; and also all
the dedicated things of the house of the Lord
did they bestow upon the Baalim. ⁸So the king
commanded, and they made a chest, and set
it without at the gate of the house of the Lord.
 7. the sons of Athaliah] To be understood figuratively, “the
adherents of Athaliah.” So “a son of the apothecaries” (Nehemiah iii.
8; compare Authorized Version with Revised Version) is “a member
of the apothecaries’ guild” and “the sons of the prophets” (2 Kings ii.
15, etc.) are “the adherents (or ‘scholars’) of the prophets.”

had broken up] Rather, had broken into.

all the dedicated things] Compare xv. 18; 1 Chronicles xviii. 10,
11. Probably gold, silver and brass.

did they bestow upon the Baalim] Or, did they make into images
of Baal. Compare Hosea ii. 8, Revised Version margin.

⁹And they made a proclamation through Judah

and Jerusalem, to bring in for the Lord the tax
that Moses the servant of God laid upon Israel
in the wilderness. ¹⁰And all the princes and all
the people rejoiced, and brought in, and cast
into the chest, until they had made an end.
9. Kings has nothing corresponding to this verse; compare verse
5 (note).

¹¹And it was so, that at what time the chest

was brought unto the king’s office ¹ by the
hand ² of the Levites, and when they saw that
there was much money, the king’s scribe ³ and
the chief priest’s officer came and emptied the
chest, and took it, and carried it to its place
again. Thus they did day by day, and gathered
money in abundance. ¹²And the king and
Jehoiada gave it to such as did the work of the
 service of the house of the Lord; and they
hired masons and carpenters to restore the
house of the Lord, and also such as wrought
iron and brass to repair the house of the
Lord.
¹ Or, officers. ² Or, which was under the hand.

³ Or, secretary.

11. at what time ... by the hand of the Levites] This clause is not
in Kings.

the chief priest’s officer] According to Kings the high-priest was

present himself. It would seem as if the Chronicler was concerned
for the dignity of the high-priest, and desired to equate it with that of
the king; if the latter was to be represented only by an officer, the
former must be also.

¹³So the workmen wrought, and the work was

perfected ¹ by them, and they set up the house
of God in its state ², and strengthened it.
¹ Hebrew healing went up upon the work.

² Or, according to the proportion thereof.

13. in its state] i.e. according to its former state.

¹⁴And when they had made an end, they

brought the rest of the money before the king
and Jehoiada, whereof were made vessels for
 the house of the Lord, even vessels to
minister, and to offer withal ¹, and spoons, and
vessels of gold and silver. And they offered
burnt offerings in the house of the Lord
continually all the days of Jehoiada.
¹ Or, pestles.

14. the rest of the money ... whereof were made vessels for the
house of the Lord] This verse conflicts with 2 Kings xii. 13, 14,
which states that the money gathered was not spent on gold and
silver vessels for the Temple but was given to the workmen who
repaired the house. The lack of such utensils and the paucity of
money implied in Kings was evidently not credited by the Chronicler.

continually] Perhaps primarily in allusion to the morning and

evening daily sacrifice (Numbers xxviii. 3‒6), but having also a wider
reference to the whole round of sacrifices.

15‒19 (no parallel in 2 Kings).

The Apostasy of Joash.

¹⁵But Jehoiada waxed old and was full of days,

and he died; an hundred and thirty years old
was he when he died.
15. an hundred and thirty years] The age ascribed to Jacob in
Genesis xlvii. 9. Its incongruity here is well pointed out by Curtis who
notes that, were the figure correct, Jehoiada’s wife must have been
about 25 years old and he about 100 at the time of Athaliah’s
assassination. The ascription of so great length of life and the
honours of his burial (verse 16) are suitable to the respect which the
Chronicler felt Jehoiada to have merited.
 ¹⁶And they buried him in the city of David
among the kings, because he had done good
in Israel, and toward God and his house.
16. among the kings] Compare verse 25 and xxi. 20.

¹⁷Now after the death of Jehoiada came the

princes of Judah, and made obeisance to the
king. Then the king hearkened unto them.
17. made obeisance] Obeisance foreshadowed a request;
compare 1 Kings i. 16.

¹⁸And they forsook the house of the Lord, the

God of their fathers, and served the Asherim
and the idols: and wrath came upon Judah
and Jerusalem for this their guiltiness.
18. they forsook the house of the Lord] Compare xxix. 6, “[they]
have turned away their faces from the habitation of the Lord.” These
phrases are a euphemism meaning “to commit apostasy.”

the Asherim and the idols] Compare xiv. 3 (note).

wrath] Hebrew qec̣eph; compare xix. 2 (note). The calamities in

question are narrated in verses 23 ff.

¹⁹Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them

again unto the Lord; and they testified
against them: but they would not give ear.
19. he sent prophets] Compare xxxvi. 15.

to them] Rather, among them.

 20‒22 (no parallel in 2 Kings).
The Martyrdom of Zechariah son of Jehoiada.

This martyrdom is referred to by our Lord in Luke xi. 51, “from the
blood of Abel unto the blood of Zachariah who perished between the
altar and the house,” i.e. “the temple” (compare Matthew xxiii. 35).
As Chronicles is the last book in the Jewish Canon, “From Abel to
Zachariah” practically includes the whole Old Testament. In the text
of Matthew Zachariah is called “son of Barachiah” either by a
confusion with Zechariah the prophet contemporary with Haggai, or,
possibly, owing to confusion with a certain Zechariah, son of
Berachiah, mentioned in Josephus (War of the Jews IV. v. 4) as
having been murdered in the Temple by the Zealots, circa 67, 68 a.d.
(see e.g. Weiss, Schriften des N.T., pp. 376, 377).

²⁰And the spirit of God came upon ¹ Zechariah

the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood
above the people, and said unto them, Thus
saith God, Why transgress ye the
commandments of the Lord, that ye cannot
prosper? because ye have forsaken the Lord,
he hath also forsaken you.
¹ Hebrew clothed itself with.

20. came upon] Hebrew “clothed itself with”; compare Judges vi.
34; 1 Chronicles xii. 18.

stood above the people] Compare Jeremiah xxxvi. 10 (Baruch

reads Jeremiah’s words from the window of an upper chamber to the
people assembled in the court below); Nehemiah viii. 4 (Ezra reads
the Law from a pulpit of wood).
 ²¹And they conspired against him, and stoned
him with stones at the commandment of the
king in the court of the house of the Lord.
21. in the court) An aggravation of the murder; compare xxiii. 14.
The altar of burnt-offering stood in the court (compare viii. 12) and
the execution (Luke xi. 51) took place between this altar and the
Temple itself.

²²Thus Joash the king remembered not the

kindness which Jehoiada his father had done
to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he
said, The Lord look upon it, and require it.
22. The Lord look upon it, and require it] Compare 2 Maccabees
xiv. 45, 46, and contrast Acts vii. 60.

23, 24 (compare 2 Kings xii. 17, 18).

The Syrian Invasion.

In 2 Kings the invasion is not represented as a judgement on

Joash, for no sin is mentioned for which this could be the
punishment.

As regards the campaign itself 2 Kings says that the Syrians

were bought off with a heavy bribe from attacking Jerusalem; nothing
is said of the amount of damage done during the invasion. The
Chronicler on the contrary says nothing of the cause of the
withdrawal of the Syrians, but simply says that a small force of them
inflicted great loss and took much spoil.

²³And it came to pass at the end ¹ of the year,

that the army of the Syrians came up against
him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem,
 and destroyed all the princes of the people
from among the people, and sent all the spoil
of them unto the king of Damascus.
¹ Hebrew revolution.

23. at the end of the year] Rather, in the course of a year, i.e.
when the same time of the year had come round again.

the princes] Who had been leaders in the apostasy (verse 17).

from among the people] The reading of the Hebrew is doubtful;

the words should perhaps be expunged.

²⁴For the army of the Syrians came with a

small company of men; and the Lord
delivered a very great host into their hand,
because they had forsaken the Lord, the God
of their fathers. So they executed judgement ¹
upon Joash.
¹ Hebrew judgements.

24. because they had forsaken the Lord] Mark the Chronicler’s
insistent enforcement of a religious meaning in history.

25‒27 (compare 2 Kings xii. 19‒21).

The End of Joash.

²⁵And when they were departed from him, (for

they left him in great diseases,) his own
servants conspired against him for the blood
 of the sons ¹ of Jehoiada the priest, and slew
him on his bed, and he died: and they buried
him in the city of David, but they buried him
not in the sepulchres of the kings.
¹ The Septuagint and Vulgate read, son.

25. for the blood of the sons of Jehoiada] No reason is alleged for
the conspiracy in Kings.

sons] LXX. and Vulgate “son”; compare verse 20.

on his bed] In Kings it is simply “smote Joash at the house of

Millo, on the way that goeth down to Silla.”

²⁶And these are they that conspired against

him; Zabad ¹ the son of Shimeath the
Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of
Shimrith ² the Moabitess.
¹ In 2 Kings xii. 12, Jozacar.

² In 2 Kings xii. 21, Shomer.

26. Zabad] In 2 Kings “Jozacar.” The difference between the

names is not great in Hebrew.

Shimeath the Ammonitess ... Shimrith the Moabitess] In 2 Kings

simply Shimeath and Shomer (no mention of their nationality being
added). In Kings the names are masculines, Shimeath and Shomer
being the fathers of the murderers. The Chronicler makes them out
to be the mothers by altering Shomer to Shimrith (Shimeath already
has a feminine termination); and by calling them respectively women
of Ammon and Moab he casts increased obloquy upon the apostate
Joash, the victim (so we are to surmise) of half-breed men whom
presumably his foreign idolatries had encouraged to dwell in
Jerusalem. At the same time the evil of foreign marriages is
emphasised by the story.

²⁷Now concerning his sons, and the greatness

of the burdens laid upon ¹ him, and the
rebuilding ² of the house of God, behold, they
are written in the commentary of the book of
the kings. And Amaziah his son reigned in his
stead.
¹ Or, uttered against. ² Hebrew founding.

27. the burdens laid upon him] Render (with margin), the
burdens (i.e. the prophetic rebukes) uttered against him. Compare
verse 19. The Hebrew text of the first half of the verse is uncertain.

the commentary] Hebrew midrash. Compare Introduction, § 5.

 Chapter XXV.
1‒4 (= 2 Kings xiv. 1‒6).
Amaziah Succeeds.

¹Amaziah was twenty and five years old

when he began to reign; and he reigned
twenty and nine years in Jerusalem: and his
mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
²And he did that which was right in the eyes of
the Lord, but not with a perfect heart.
2. not with a perfect heart] In Kings, “yet not like David his father”
(because “the high places were not taken away”). The Chronicler
has something more serious in his mind; compare verses 14‒16.

³Now it came to pass, when the kingdom was

established unto him, that he slew his
servants which had killed the king his father.
3. unto him] LXX., ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ “in his hand,” as in Kings.

⁴But he put not their children to death, but did

according to that which is written in the law in
the book of Moses, as the Lord commanded,
saying, The fathers shall not die for the
children, neither shall the children die for the
 fathers: but every man shall die for his own
sin.
4. he put not their children to death] Contrast Joshua vii. 24 ff.; 2
Kings ix. 26. Clearly the sparing of the children is here mentioned as
being a practice unknown or still very unusual at the time.

according to that which is written] i.e. in Deuteronomy xxiv. 16

(compare Ezekiel xviii. 20).

5‒10 (not in Kings).

Amaziah prepares for War.

⁵Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together,

and ordered them according to their fathers’
houses, under captains of thousands and
captains of hundreds, even all Judah and
Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty
years old and upward, and found them three
hundred thousand chosen men, able to go
forth to war, that could handle spear and
shield.
5. three hundred thousand] Compare the much larger numbers
recorded for Asa (xiv. 8) and Jehoshaphat (xvii. 14 ff.).

⁶He hired also an hundred thousand mighty

men of valour out of Israel for an hundred
talents of silver.
6. He hired also ... out of Israel] The sequel to the hiring of these
mercenaries is given in verses 10 and 13. The episode, which is
entirely unknown apart from the present passage, is most
interesting. It agrees most admirably with the Chronicler’s way of
thinking; for the sin of seeking Israelite help is punished through the
damage inflicted by the disappointed soldiers after their dismissal,
whilst the virtue of dismissing them in obedience to the prophet’s
command is rewarded by the victory gained by Amaziah over Edom.
The story seems too subtle to be wholly an invention, and several
scholars consider it probable that the hiring of the Israelites and their
subsequent plundering has a basis in some old tradition.

⁷But there came a man of God to him, saying,

O king, let not the army of Israel go with thee;
for the Lord is not with Israel, to wit, with all
the children of Ephraim.
7. the Lord is not with Israel] Compare xiii. 8‒12.

all the children of Ephraim] the phrase is added to show that here
the writer has used “Israel” in the sense of the Northern Kingdom.

⁸But if thou wilt go ¹, do valiantly, be strong for

the battle: God shall cast thee down before
the enemy; for God hath power to help, and to
cast down.
¹ Or, go thou.

8. God shall cast thee down] i.e. If despite the warning he

persists in his purpose, God will cause his effort to fail, no matter
how well he fights.

⁹And Amaziah said to the man of God, But

what shall we do for the hundred talents which
I have given to the army of Israel ¹? And the
 man of God answered, The Lord is able to
give thee much more than this. ¹⁰Then
Amaziah separated them, to wit, the army ¹
that was come to him out of Ephraim, to go
home again: wherefore their anger was greatly
kindled against Judah, and they returned
home in fierce anger.
¹ Hebrew troop.

9. The Lord is able to give thee much more than this] An

utterance worthy to be placed in the mouth of a prophet.

11, 12 (compare 2 Kings xiv. 7).

Victory over Edom.

¹¹And Amaziah took courage, and led forth his

people, and went to the Valley of Salt, and
smote of the children of Seir ten thousand.
11. the Valley of Salt] The scene of one of David’s victories (1
Chronicles xviii. 12; see note there).

children of Seir] The Edomites were so called because “Mount

Seir” was part of their territory; Deuteronomy ii. 5, and see note on
xx. 10. Originally subdued in David’s reign, they had revolted in the
time of Jehoram (see xxi. 10).

¹²And other ten thousand did the children of

Judah carry away alive, and brought them
unto the top of the rock ¹, and cast them down
 from the top of the rock ¹, that they all were
broken in pieces.
¹ Or, Sela.

12. other ten thousand ... carry away alive) Neither this capture
nor the subsequent massacre is mentioned in Kings The huge scale
of the victory may be only a product of the Chronicler’s free
imagination. On the other hand, if any real information were available
outside the canonical books this is the sort of tradition we might
expect to survive, full allowance of course being made for great
exaggeration in the numbers given. Further, it accords with the
sequence of events given in Chronicles, see note on xxvi. 7.

13 (no parallel in Kings).

Outrages of the Ephraimite Mercenaries.

¹³But the men of the army ¹ which Amaziah

sent back, that they should not go with him to
battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from
Samaria even unto Beth-horon, and smote of
them three thousand, and took much spoil.
¹ Hebrew the sons of the troop.

13. the cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Beth-horon] We

might have expected the two names given to be names of cities
belonging to the Southern Kingdom. But Samaria is given apparently
as the base from which the marauders started.

14‒16 (not in Kings).

Amaziah’s Idolatry and the Prophet’s Rebuke.